I was fortunate in receiving an invitation to watch an early screening of Thor; the Dark World on Saturday evening. I thought the film was fantastic, action filled and filled with humorous elements. Extremely entertaining, visually outstanding and definitely worth seeing, I was certainly never bored! I will be going to see this again for sure!!!

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ORIGINAL: ambermaher7

I was fortunate in receiving an invitation to watch an early screening of Thor; the Dark World on Saturday evening. I thought the film was fantastic, action filled and filled with humorous elements. Extremely entertaining, visually outstanding and definitely worth seeing, I was certainly never bored! I will be going to see this again for sure!!!

You've actually seen the film? There is no place for you here...

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I just wish stuff like, I don't know, the slow & systemic CRATERING of this country could inspire the same call-to-arms as Batman casting

The Dark World is a solid addition to the canon, but a fairly weak film in its own right, even as a Thor sequel. As much as I love Paramount's Marvelverse, even I've got to admit this has a sniff of filler about it. Pretty great filler, but even soÖ

Everyoneís gotten over The Avengers by now. Thatís the main message that one will take away from Marvelís second post-Whedon film after Mayís Iron Man 3, which unfortunately suffered from a severe case of ĎThis-isnít-as-good-as-Avengers-itusí. Some film had to take the hit of being next in line after The Battle of New York exploded onto our screens in Summer 2012, and Shane Black and Robert Downey Jr drew the short straws. Would Thor: The Dark World be as thoroughly enjoyable as it is had it been released in the place of Iron Man 3, weíll never know, but itís unlikely!

The film, the first of the Avengers-brand movies to really work as a standalone story since the original Iron Man, begins as it means to go on- with an insanely over-the-top prologue about Malekeith (a prothetic-heavy Christopher Eccleston) and his Dark Elves. The detailed, sparsely populated landscape of The Dark World in question lie before the filmís chief villain, designed to perfection by Charles Wood and Game of Thrones veteran director Alan Taylor. Throughout the narrative, when the action isnít taking place in the spectacularly beautiful and deeply immersive Asgard or central London, itís in The Dark World. This is the setting for the filmís midpoint set-piece and part of its joyfully convoluted and unexpectedly insane finale, which sees the God of Thunder himself and Malekeith jump between locations by way of a McGuffin device as they battle. Itís about the quietest, emptiest place youíll ever see in a Marvel film, and its a sign of how much the film sets itself apart from the overall franchise that so much screentime is dedicated to it. Alan Taylor recently spoke of his dislike of a particular mid-credits scene which sets up a future Marvel film, and itís easy to see his reasons!

Natalie Portmanís Jane Foster, Thorís Earth-bound girlfriend from Kenneth Branaghís 2011 Thor, has moved from New Mexico to London, hence preventing another Breaking Bad- with- superheroes. London is an astonishingly refreshing setting for the film, even as it is being somewhat ripped to shreds by the final act, as it was in last yearís Skyfall. It reminds one of just how tedious it is to watch supermen do battle in an obviously chosen, or worse- fictional, US city when you see the interesting locations, angles and twists that can come with writing a battle scene for a city like London, or in the case of Guillermo Del Toroís Pacific Rim, Hong Kong. Thereís no particular reason for Portmanís Jane to be in London, but the setting sets up fairly hilarious subplots involving a charming but goofy date for Jane (Chris OíDowd), an intern (Jonathan Howard) whom Kat Denningís shockingly charming Darcy falls for, and Stellan SkarsgŚrdís previously-possessed-by-Loki Selvig being shown on the news running around Stonehenge naked (and bumping into Stan Lee, topping himself once again with a brilliant cameo).

Ah, Loki! What of Thorís previously villainous brother whom trailers have shown to be on the good side? Well, Tom Hiddleston does a job as fabulous as usual, cackling and enunciating his way through every thoroughly fun scene. There is one chat between the brothers in particular, which I wonít spoil, that ends with a CANNILY good impression of another Avenger. There are a number of almost unfollowable twists involving Loki, which I still havenít quite gotten my head around, which prove either the genius or insanity of the writers, and that continue until practically the final frame of the film (par the two post-credits scenes, BOTH of which it is vital to stick around for).

Elves-wise, they are certainly a more complicated and therefore interesting bunch of evildoers than The Mandarin and his troupe were, despite not being much fun. In fact, supervillain Kurse, played by Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Mr Eko from Lost), is pretty damn terrifying! Meanwhile, Anthony Hopkins pretty much sleeps his way through his performance as Odin, Zachary Levy and Jaimie Alexander are pretty but one-dimensional as Thorís Asagard-buddies, and Rene Russo tries her best to liven up proceedings as Thorís mother.

Not naming names, there is a funeral scene about one-third of the way into the film which, while beautiful (and eerily reminiscent of Portmanís in Revenge of the Sith), from its music to its colours is 100% Lord of the Rings-y, and this blatant copying of tone and style slightly takes away from the emotion. Some very Star Wars-esque flying-vehicle scenes midway through are the filmís action highpoint, and rival Star Trek Into Darkness for the yearís best sci-fi action overall!

Taylor has, while not particularly leaving a distinctive mark on the film, made a distinctively standalone adventure for the always likeable characters. Natalie Portman in particular stands out, holding her own amongst the tall, strong men and the creepy evil Elves, but Tom Hiddleston as as excellent as before and Chris Hemsworth doesnít let those around him down. The final scenes are far, far more fun than Man of Steel or even Iron Man 3Ďs could ever have been, in keeping with the filmís constant attempt to be fresh, unique and absurdly brilliant, which it constantly succeeds in doing. Not without its flaws, this could not have been topped, and betters by a good yard Kenneth Branaghís overly experimental (for a superhero film) 2011 film. Marvel have once again proven that just because they made 2 films a year, those donít have to be clichť-ridden piles of rubbish. One to see Thor 5, please!

Marvel knock it out of the park again. Nice balance between comedy/action. Really enjoyed the thor/loki relationship. Anyone else think there was a star wars vibe in there? Also the mid movie cameo was incredible.

Watched the film yesterday and enjoyed it. The problem with films like that can be that you so much want to like them that it is hard for them to live up to your expectations. That's why I probably will watch it a second time - also because I missed the second post credit scene... Didn't care too much about the mid-credits scene I have to say (was that Benicio del Toro??).

The tone is different to the other Marvel universe films, even to the original Thor. Not sure it this is a sci-fi film or not! It has a Star Wars feeling to it sometimes. I had to laugh several times too as some scenes are quite funny and I loved the showdown which was very creative (but yes: candidate for Bad Science Award).

All the actors manage well to inhabite their roles and own them (and I watched this mainly for Tom who is mostly responsible for giving the film some emotional depth and entertainment), only Anthony Hopkins as Odin seems to be a bit on autopilot but still has an impressive presence.

All in all a solid film with a somewhat strange plot at times but not too strange to still enjoy the whole thing.

About the running time: I thought it was fine and I also think some of the recent blockbuster movies went on for too long in the end and you even start to be a bit bored by all the action (sorry, Man of Steel).

The action sequences alone were worth the ticket, the final battle in particular. It's a shame that Eccleston's character was such a vanilla-villain but the Dark Elves are really cool looking. The blend of fantasy/sci-fi really works. I would definitely give this another watch, it's a cracking follow up to The Avengers.

The first 50 minutes or so is quite slow and does not progress that well, however, from there the comedy and action is well executed. But Malekith, is not developed and is reduced to a villain with no depth. Apart from that this is a good, fun movie!

The first 50 minutes or so is quite slow and does not progress that well, however, from there the comedy and action is well executed. But Malekith, is not developed and is reduced to a villain with no depth. Apart from that this is a good, fun movie!

The first 50 minutes or so is quite slow and does not progress that well, however, from there the comedy and action is well executed. But Malekith, is not developed and is reduced to a villain with no depth. Apart from that this is a good, fun movie!

I really enjoyed this film and agree with Empire that the fun is amplified whenever Thor and Loki share a scene together. Hemsworth and Hiddleston look to be having a blast and it certainly shines through. Loved the little comedic moments (especially that cameo ), but I was slightly let down by the villain of the piece. It's a shame as Ecclestone is a great actor and I reckon he had the potential to be a fantastic character. However, I still thoroughly enjoyed Marvel's continuing Phase 2.

4/5

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Viewers of a nervous disposition may be interested to know that your television is off and I am speaking to you from inside your head...

Thought it was pretty decent, but (dare I say it?) I felt a slight tinge of Avenger related fatigue. This is after all, the character's third appearance in as many years. Still, it wasn't a bad trip to the flicks, although I'm not sure whether I'll pick it up on bluray later. Bottom line was that it wasn't quite as good as the first, but rates ***1/2 in my humble opinion.

SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Loved the cameo half way through, and most of the Loki stuff lifted the film's quality levels. Stellan Skarsgard was pretty much wasted as an under pant donning lunatic ( regardless of the fact "He's had a god in his head"), and Renee Russo kicked some ass. As someone has already pointed out, Marvel really needs to inject some much needed gravitas to the material by allowing some major characters to die. And could somebody please explain what happened to Odin at the end...

SPOILERS END

I this in 2-d and it worked just fine. It is quite a dark looking film, so I imagine 3-D will pretty hard work with this

Formulaic, bland, poor, lazy unambitious: this is Marvel at its worst. Avengers made me believe that Marvel had finally stepped out of their lazy, formated movies, Iron Man 3 somehow confirmed it... and this Thor sequel is just a terrible step back. There's barely a story (a stupid, cartoon-like one) and the action simply goes from a situation to another situation without taking any time to, you know, involve the viewers. Dramatic things happen, but we don't give a shit, a few seconds later the movie's already elsewhere. The actors aren't having any fun, except Hiddleston's Loki who's given the best lines and a very, very good joke.

The design is atrocious and overal the movie copy-pastes (very badly) pretty much everything from other movies. This franchise is epic-wannabe but stays at a Disney-level. Thor: The Dark World is "just another little adventure with Thor to take your money before you get Avengers 2". Definitely, the least interesting franchise/character out of the Avengers team.

All the ingredients of this movie are just worth of a silly, cheap, rushed B-movie. If it hadn't a well-known character in it, it would've gone direct-to-video and would've been trashed by everybody.

I'd give 2/5 but since Marvel once again chose to shot and "think" this whole movie in 2D, and then to post-convert it in an atrocious, unneeded 3D, i'll give it the minimum. If you're not interested in using 3D seriously, please don't release your movie in 3D, it's just going to make people hating it while there's so much to do with it.

The mighty Thor returns in a thrilling, at times funny and epic sequel. We begin with the imprisonment of Loki and a balance restored to the universe of the nine realms,..until now. Most of the characters have returned Thor's love interest Jane Foster (a quirky Natalie Portman) together with her science crew finds a an inter dimensional anomaly and worse she get's infected by a world altering evil energy called the Aether. So it's up to Thor and his band of warriors to save the earth from being consumed by darkness,..and the terrifying aspect of the world seeing Professor Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard) naked one more time.

It all moves at a good pace, what' really interesting though is the team up of Loki and Thor to do battle against an evil far greater then they good have both imagined. It makes for some thrilling funny drama, especially when the pair must escape from the Dark Elves and their own army in a flashy space ship battle through dazzling landscapes of Thors homeworld,...while also destroying huge asopects of it..."You just decapitated your Grandfather" Loki quips as Thor crashes into monuments, buildings and half the city of Asgard. So begins treason, peril and the fight to save all mankind in true comic book fashion.

Other characters put in good turns, Odin (Anthony Hopkins), Reno Russo as Frigga, the ever present in all action films Idris Elba as the goliath Hiemdale.But it's Thor and Loki who steal the show here. Both truly relish the roles and dialogue and it just makes the drama so much more interesting throughout. It all builds to a great climax in the city of London, where Thor and co must do battle and finish the evil Malekith (Cristopher Eccleston) from destroying the world as we know it, cue huge bust ups, plenty hammer throwing action and some blossoming romance thrown in for good measure.

A movie such as this should be judged on what it actually is. Im sure some folk go to see something that is obviously 'popcorn blockbuster fayre' just so they can have a dig about how 'uninspiring' it was. Thor The Dark World is fun plain and simple which falls short of the first Thor in my humble opinion but not by much. The humour is spot on and not over done or misplaced...... one funniest bit for me being the Stan Lee cameo. The action and effects were well executed and not over the top although the end action sequence seemed a tad rushed. Malekith was a bit of a naff villain who never came across with enough conviction - i even heard Tony Starks voice saying such a thing at one point in my head a la Avengers : "you lack conviction" - or enough plain evilness. Dont quibble about Odin people! Thats clearly a setup for a third Thor.

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"The one about the space hairdresser and the cowboy. He's got a tinfoil pal and a pedalbin. His Father's a robot and he's fucking fucked his Sister. Lego ... They're all made of fucking Lego!!"

A movie such as this should be judged on what it actually is. Im sure some folk go to see something that is obviously 'popcorn blockbuster fayre' just so they can have a dig about how 'uninspiring' it was. Thor The Dark World is fun plain and simple which falls short of the first Thor in my humble opinion but not by much. The humour is spot on and not over done or misplaced...... one funniest bit for me being the Stan Lee cameo. The action and effects were well executed and not over the top although the end action sequence seemed a tad rushed. Malekith was a bit of a naff villain who never came across with enough conviction - i even heard Tony Starks voice saying such a thing at one point in my head a la Avengers : "you lack conviction" - or enough plain evilness. Dont quibble about Odin people! Thats clearly a setup for a third Thor.

So...it wasn't as good as the first one. The bad guy wasn't great and the ending was rushed. But if for some people that was enough to sink the film, they are just moaning and out to "get" superhero movies?

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It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to, than I have ever known.

I found this to be quite a weak entry in the series. The tone never quite worked jumping between ruminations on consequences of war to Dr Selvig in his pants. Where Kat Dennings was quite charming in the first film, both she and O'Dowd were blatantly COMIC RELIEF here and didn't work for me.

Also agree with Empire review that Malekith was just dull and under written. And the Sif subplot - don't understand why they didn't pursue that more. The post credits sting is utterly pointless, I'd advise against waiting for it.

Still fun easy viewing and Hiddleston and Hemsworth remain great in my view.

SPOILERS

How easily was Asgard breached too, seemed a bit ridiculous?

Anyone care to offer an explanation for Loki's revival? Just acted dead until back in Asgard, bit too easy wasn't it?

For you Marvel experts, whats the deal with The Collector? What exactly were they giving him and why would he be trusted? Is he likely to turn up in Guardians?